Rodeo Lagoon

2025年8月24日 Nature observation, Birds

Crossing the Golden Gate Bridge from San Francisco, you immediately find yourself in a natural area that feels far removed from the city. Just west of the bridge lies Rodeo Lagoon and Rodeo Beach, which surrounds it. Rodeo Lagoon is said to be one of the Bay Area’s top birding spots, and indeed, eBird shows a wealth of observation reports. The lagoon is surrounded by a varied terrain of waterfront, beach, forest, and low hills, which likely attracts such a wide variety of birds.

…With high hopes I came here, but on that day the weather was unfortunately poor (typical San Francisco!), and there weren’t many signs of birds either.

Great Blue Heron standing at the edge of grassy wetlands in autumn at Rodeo Lagoon — At the edge of the lagoon, there was a Great Blue Heron.

Autumn beach landscape at Rodeo Beach — With no particularly notable encounters, I decided to treat it as a hike and kept walking. Rodeo Beach seemed popular with people letting their dogs play. At sunset, it must offer beautiful scenery.

Bull kelp washed ashore on a sandy beach in autumn at Rodeo Beach — Huge seaweeds were washed up everywhere. They appeared to be Bull Kelp, a type of kelp. Underwater, these frond-like parts rise upward, forming a forest-like stand.

Close-up of a Lesser Sandpiper walking along the sandy shore in autumn at Rodeo Lagoon — A Least Sandpiper walking along the beach.

Distant view of pelicans gathered on an island in autumn at Rodeo Lagoon — From the shore, you can see an island called Bird Island. As the name suggests, it was filled with pelicans and gulls.

Pied-billed Grebe swimming in autumn at Rodeo Lagoon — A Pied-billed Grebe was on the lagoon.

Double-crested Cormorant perched on a branch above the water in autumn at Rodeo Lagoon — A Double-crested Cormorant.

It’s a place I’d like to visit more regularly, but it’s a pity that you can only reach it by passing through San Francisco. If that’s the case, I’d rather make more trips to Coyote Hills.